By Billy Mijungu
Africa is on fire. From Sudan to Chad, from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Ethiopia and Eritrea, the continent is a battlefield of conflicts that threaten to consume entire nations.
Sudan is engulfed in war, Chad is on the verge of collapse, the DRC is spiraling into chaos, and Ethiopia is preparing for a confrontation with Eritrea over the Assab port. Eritrea, in turn, is ready to carve Tigray out of Ethiopia, a move they are fully capable of executing.
In Nigeria, terrorism has found a home. Armed groups operate with impunity, crossing into Cameroon and the broader region to unleash terror before returning to their safe havens.
South Sudan is boiling with instability, and the entire region is a ticking time bomb. The danger is real, the suffering is immense, and the threats are growing by the day.
Yet in the midst of this turmoil, the African Union Commission stands still. The very institution that should be leading the charge for peace, stability, and security has become a shadow of itself.
The new chairperson, Mahmoud Youssouf, has failed to rise to the occasion. While regional blocs like the Southern African Development Community and the East African Community attempt to mediate in Congo, the AU remains silent, its structures ignored, its presence reduced to irrelevance.
Instead of leading peace efforts, instead of rallying Africa’s diplomatic weight, the chairperson is focused on mundane administrative affairs in Addis Ababa opening Cafeterias and concentrating nepotism.
He has made the AU dysfunctional. His leadership lacks authority, his influence is absent, and his failure is evident.
Africa cannot afford an idle chief diplomat. The AU chairperson is not a ceremonial figure but the driver of the continent’s peace and security agenda. He must be at the forefront, engaging warring factions, negotiating ceasefires, mobilizing regional leaders, and pressing for solutions.
The absence of decisive leadership at the AU is not just a bureaucratic failure. It is a betrayal of the millions suffering under conflict. If Mahmoud Youssouf cannot step up and take control of the crisis, then he must step down. The African Union cannot be held hostage by weak leadership.
The continent needs a chairperson who commands respect, who takes action, and who refuses to watch Africa burn from the comfort of an office in Addis. If he cannot deliver, then he must go.
